14 DAY TRIAL // Adobe considers the Home Basic Edition of Windows Vista insignificant, and insignificant is an euphemism. The fact of the matter is that to Adobe, Vista Home Basic is nothing, and it doesn't even compare to Windows XP Service Pack 2. Microsoft released Windows Vista to general consumers on January 30. However, even from that point on, Adobe still managed to drag its feet when it came down to delivering support for the latest Windows operating system with its software. And half a year following the launch of Vista, Adobe is still far from guarantying customers that its products will integrate seamlessly with Vista.
However, the company did manage to find a shortcut. As Windows Vista comes in multiple flavors ? and supporting the Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, Enterprise and Ultimate would have proven simply too much of a task for Adobe ? the low end edition of the operating system was completely ignored. If you want to deploy Adobe's Creative Suite 3 on Vista Home Premium, Business, Enterprise or Ultimate there is absolutely no problem. But Windows Vista Home Basic just didn't fit into Adobe's plans for CS3.
"Support Policy for Adobe Creative Suite 3 on Microsoft Vista Home Basic - Adobe Creative Suite 3 is not supported on Microsoft Vista Home Basic. The product was not tested on Vista Home Basic. If through the course of normal troubleshooting it is revealed that the problem is because of a limitation of the OS and not the application, then Adobe Technical Support may not be able to resolve the issue," reveals Adobe's Support TechNote kb400633.
What is disconcerting, and inevitably a source of frustration is that Adobe does support Windows XP SP2 with CS3, but definitely not Vista Home Basic. And in case that the TechNote doesn't make sense to you, then let me read between the lines. Adobe did not even test CS3 on Windows Vista Home Basic. Still, they do consider that the core of the Vista operating system, common to all editions, might be limited to the basic version.
They couldn't know, because they haven't tested it. It's perhaps more of a hint. Maybe because of the name. If Microsoft has named it Vista Home Medium instead of Basic, then maybe Adobe would have failed to see the limitations. And in the end, Adobe is apparently incapable of offering support for CS3 issues caused by Vista Home Basic. Now, I'll be honest with you: I think that Adobe believes that their $1,500+ CS3 is not fit to integrate with a $199 copy of Vista.